Dozens of South Korean women have come forward to say they were subjected to humiliating "medical" examinations during interviews for 18 flight attendant jobs with Garuda Indonesia last month, according to AFP.

One of the applicants said she was told to strip to her panties to prove she did not have tattoos or breast implants.

An airline official confirmed to South Korea's Yonhap news agency that a male Indonesian doctor physically inspected the applicants' breasts as part of the screening process.

"The hand examination on breast was held since those with implants can have health issues when air pressure falls during flights," the official said.

"We conduct full examination of skin on the basis of the religious guideline prohibiting tattoos," she added.

"I cannot believe that an international carrier has actually conducted a test in such a way. Of course there is a medical test. But it never involves getting semi-naked and (being) touched on the breasts," the source said.

A flight attendant with another airline described the examination as "insulting and inhumane", while Korean women's rights activist LeeKoo Kyung-sook said it smacked of "sexual assault."

"The ban on breast implantation sounds almost absurd. Does that mean people who have received plastic surgeries shouldn’t be on board?" she asked.

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